For nearly three years, thousands of people have been able to visit California state parks for free by checking out a pass at their public library. Under the new proposed state budget, though, the program could vanish.
When it began in 2022, parks officials said six out of 10 Californians lived in areas with less than three acres of parks or open space per 1,000 residents. The California State Library Parks Pass was meant to lower the barriers for urban residents who want to visit the state's vast network of parks.
It has since proved to be popular. The Los Angeles County Library system alone has loaned out almost 10,000 passes. In Orange County, libraries loaned out nearly 10,000 passes just last year.
But with Gov. Gavin Newsom facing a yawning deficit, his proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2024-25, which begins July 1, eliminates the three-year pilot program, which has so far received $16.5 million from the state.
According to the California State Parks Foundation, more than 63% of survey respondents who checked out the pass identified as Black, Indigenous, or people of color. Nearly 70% of the respondents also indicated that they have a household income level of less than $60,000.
“It is introducing a whole new generation and new communities of folks to this incredible state park system that we have in California,” said Rachel Norton, executive director of the California State Parks Foundation.
Surveys conducted by the foundation found that the primary barrier preventing people from visiting state parks is cost. After using the library pass, people were also more likely to go back to the parks, Norton said.
Park entrance fees at California state parks vary but can reach up to $15 per car. The entrance fee to McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, for instance, is $8, while Malibu Creek State Park is $12.
Should the parks program be eliminated in the final budget, state officials have said they intend to explore potential partnerships to continue making free park passes available.
A spokesperson for California Department of State Parks also said new funding for the California State Park Adventure Pass program is proposed in the education budget.
That free annual pass, however, is only for families with children in the fourth grade.
